The “Free To Good Home” Story No One Sticks Around To See

You see it all the time. “Free to good home,” the ad says on Facebook or Craigslist. The horse in the photos is usually older. Maybe he’s got a hitch in his step, but his eye is still warm, kind and trusting.

The owner can no longer keep him for a number of reasons: they must downsize the herd. Financial problems. “Divorce forces sale.” Or, more commonly, this old soul can no longer physically pack his mom or kid around, and horses are too expensive to keep around as just a pasture ornament.

It’s easy to judge – we all do. Every horse deserves a forever home. In a perfect world, when that horse comes into your life, he should have space in it until he takes his final breath. But the world we live in is more complicated than that.

Horses are expensive. As they age, they often require more diligent care. People who want horses in their lives, and who want to consider themselves horsemen, need to understand this before they ever even consider becoming a horse owner. But so many discard their horses when they are no longer useful to them, and that’s a problem.

All too often, the “free to good home” method backfires, and it’s the horse that suffers.

I was reminded of this recently, and the photos I saw of the horse who ended up in this situation will stick with me forever.

The big dark bay gelding was an imported warmblood and a competitive show jumper back in his heyday. I only knew him after his jumping career had ended – the owner had a family of her own now but was willing to pay board for him to live out his days packing beginner lesson kids around. He was fabulous at this job for several years, until it was time for him to retire fully.

One day, said owner found a home she thought would take care of him in his final years. That meant no more monthly board cost, no more paying for routine upkeep, no more surprise vet bills. The gelding, who was impeccably bred, showed at the premier circuits and was once worth a hefty penny, was given away for free.

Just a month into his new ownership, his condition deteriorated. He had a giant, festering gash across his face. His hips jutted out from his sides and his flanks were hollow. How could a horse have lost so much weight in just four weeks? He was starved.

Luckily, this horse was pulled out of that situation before it was too late. The longtime owner was horrified. But beyond the feelings of shame and guilt, it was the horse who suffered by no fault of his own.

In these gruesome photos, I can still see the kind, trusting horse I knew. His eye was still soft. He was approaching whoever was taking the photos with his ears pricked and in a relaxed manner. Despite what he had endured, he hadn’t lost trust in people.

We don’t deserve horses. And the horses deserve far better than this.